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PROlS

URBAN SCALE VARIABILITY OF PM2 5 COMPONENTS

Carvin D. Stevens, Ron Williams, Alan Vette and Paul Jones
U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, NC

Disclaimer: "Although this work was reviewed by EPA and approved for publication, it may not necessarily reflect
official Agency policy."	

BACKGROUND

Introduction

An objective of the Detroit Exposure and Aerosol
Research Study (DEARS) is to determine the
associations between concentrations measured at
central site monitors and outdoor residential, indoor
residential and personal exposures for selected air
toxics, PM constituents, and PM from specific sources.

PURPOSE

The focus of this poster is to demonstrate that a
central site monitor adequately represents ambient
concentrations of PM2 5 mass and its secondary
constituents over a county-level scale in an urban area
(Fig.l). Primary aerosol components, however, are
much more spatially variable due to local source
contributions in the Detroit urban air shed and more
spatially resolved measurements are necessary.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Materials and methods

Residential outdoor and central site monitoring are
being perfonned during the DEARS to assess the
variability in composition and concentrations of fine
particulate matter across the urban air shed.

Participants are monitored for 5 days each in the
summer and winter. Their residences are located in
seven different environmental monitoring areas (EMA)
across a 1400km2 area. The sources potentially
impacting each EMA vary from industrial and mobile
source categories including coal combustion, coke
production, iron and steel production and oil refineries.
Sample collections were performed with personal
environmental monitors (PEM) using Teflon and quartz
filters. Gravimetric analysis were used to detennine the
PM2 5 mass. The elemental concentrations (Si, Mn, S,
Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Pb, Se, Sr, Cr, Ca, & Fe) were
determined using XRF analysis. Concentrations of OC
and EC were measured using the thermal-optical
reflectance method on the quartz filters.

Fig.l, Environmental Monitoring Areas (EMAs)

DEARS Study Sites

(Emphasis on Proximity to Sources)

Exposure
Measurement
Areas (EMA)

1-Industrial

2-Industrial

3-Diesel

4-T	raffic/
Industrial

5-Industrial

6-Highway

7-Regional

Table. 1. Species Formation and Sources.

Species

P/S

Sources

Comments

Sulfate

s

Fossil fuel
combustion

Primary component
ofPM25 (eastern
U.S)

Nitrate

s

Fossil fuel
combustion

Primary component
ofPM25 (western
U.S.)

Metals

p

Smelters, soil,
incinerators

Manganese, nickel,
copper, zinc, etc

Crustal

p

Soil, Coal fired
boiler

Silicon, calcium,
iron, titanium

Elemental
Carbon

p

Fossil fuel
combustion

Inert and small size
long transport

Organic
Carbon

S/P

Fossil fuel
combustion

A primary
component of PM25

P = primary, local sources S = secondary, regional sources

fig.2. PM2.5 Composition-Summer



























,rtni,



~	EMA1
HEM A3

~	EMA4

~	EMA6

~	EMA7

¦ Allen Park





fig.3. PM2.5 Compositions-Winter





ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like to acknowledge Anne Rea, Carry Croghan
and RTI International for their contribution in the
collection and analyses of the data.

RESULTS

Preliminary data analysis indicated that the
concentrations of PM2 5 mass were fairly consistent
across the air shed, varying no more than 10% across
an area of 1400km2. However, the composition of
PM2 5 in each EMA was highly variable for the primary
components (Table I) when compared to the central
site at Allen Park. The differences were as great as
36% for the metals. The PM2 5 mass composition was
determined to be seasonally-dependent (Figs. 2 & 3).
The particle bound nitrate was approximately 45% of
the total ambient PM2 5 mass concentration during the
winter, and only 7% during the summer. The
percentages of the PM2 5 composed of the secondary
aerosol components (sulfates and nitrates) were highly
correlated and statistically significant across the urban
air shed for the summer and winter seasons (Table 2).

CONCLUSIONS

These data suggest that a central site monitor may
adequately represent the spatial distribution of
secondaiy components (Nitrates & Sulfates) of PM2 5,
but not adequately represent the primary components
(primary OC, EC, metals, crustal, etc.) contributed by
local sources. Additional source monitoring will be
needed with the inclusion of survey, activity, source
apportionment and meteorological results to provide
better estimates for modeling spatial distributions and
exposures to these pollutants across the air shed.

Table.2. Pearson correlation coefficients between PM2.5
components measured at the various EMAs and Allen Park
during Summer 2004

Species

EMA

1

3

4

6

7

OC

0.558

0.476

0.537

0.652

0.718

N03

0.897

0.856

0.893

0.832

0.958

so4

0.968

0.978

0.975

0.983

0.983

Table.3. Pearson correlation coefficients between PM2.5
components measured at the various EMAs and Alien Park
during Winter 2005

Species

EMA

1

3

4

6

7

OC

0.677

0.755

0.500

0.754

0.571

N03

0.885

0.997

0.785

0.940

0.971

so4

0.946

0.975

0.989

0.988

0.984


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